Arlington-based EJF Capital LLC, an alternative investment manager with about $7 billion in assets under management, has big plans for newly designated “opportunity zones” created to boost development in areas that have struggled to find investment — a $500 million real estate investment and development fund.
The firm aims to take advantage of the potentially enormous tax benefits of the low-income and underdeveloped areas across the country dubbed opportunity zones. Investors who put money into a designated opportunity zone — created in the tax-reform bill Congress passed late last year — can see their capital gains taxes from those investments reduced or completely eliminated (your mileage may vary; go see an accountant).
Large portions of Southeast D.C. have been designated opportunity zones, including Anacostia and Fairlawn, and much of the waterfront, as well as smaller areas in Northeast, such as Brentwood.